Authoritativeness

chapter and verse An authority that gives credence and validity to one’s opinions or beliefs; a definitive source that can be specifically cited. The phrase derives from the Scriptures which are arranged in chapters and verses, thus facilitating easy reference to particular lines. In non-Biblical contexts, chapter and verse is frequently a challenge to produce incontrovertible, detailed evidence for one’s opinions. Figurative use dates from the early 17th century.

She can give chapter and verse for her belief. (William Makepeace Thackeray, The Adventures of Philip on His Way Through the World, 1862)

ex cathedra Authoritatively, dogmatically, officially; Latin for ‘from the chair.’ Cathedra itself refers to the chair or seat of a bishop in his church. Most specifically, it refers to that of the Bishop of Rome, the Pope, who according to church doctrine is infallible when speaking ex cathedra since he is not speaking for himself but as the successor and agent of Saint Peter. More generally cathedra means any seat of office or professorial chair. Anyone speaking from such a seat of power or knowledge would naturally speak with great authority. The phrase dates from at least 1635.

from the horse’s mouth On good authority, from a reliable source, directly from someone in the know; often in the phrase straight from the horse’s mouth. The allusion is to the practice of looking at a horse’s teeth to determine its age and condition, rather than relying on the word of a horse trader.

The prospect of getting the true facts—straight, as it were, from the horse’s mouth—held him … fascinated. (P. G. Wodehouse in Strand Magazine, August, 1928)

in black and white In writing or in print—black referring to the ink, white to the paper; certain, verifiable. Written opinion or assertion is assumed to carry more weight than a verbal one. The phrase has been in use since the time of Shakespeare.

Moreover sir, which indeed is not under white and black, this plaintiff here … did call me ass. (Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing V, i)

His person showed marks of habitual neglect, his dress was slovenly; and yet there was something in the presence of the old Squire distinguishable from that of the ordinary farmers in the parish, who were perhaps every whit as refined as he, but, having slouched their way through life with a consciousness of being in the vicinity of their "betters", wanted that self-possession and authoritativeness of voice and carriage which belonged to a man who thought of superiors as remote existences with whom he had personally little more to do than with America or the stars.

Rather than rely on the opinions and authoritativeness of past voices, Chittick presents his own reading of the tradition in which a position of religious pluralism is rendered possible through God's mercy.

One experiment found that SINS was related positively to each of the seven subscales of the NPI, which measure various components of narcissism (vanity, exhibitionism, exploitiveness, authoritativeness, superiority, self-sufficiency, and entitlement).

Nor is their authoritativeness authoritarian; Watson acknowledges his subjectivity when speaking of translation: "The reader should perhaps be reminded that when he reads these early Chinese works in translation, he is at many points reading not an incontrovertible rendering of the meaning of the original, but only one of a variety of tentative interpretations.

The social fact thesis is complemented by the "conventionality thesis," which explains that the authoritativeness of the validity criteria comes from its acceptance by the legal officials of a community as the grounds which define law.

The authoritativeness and steadfastness of the Iranian people forced the West to withdraw from its previous positions against Iran and pushed it to the nuclear negotiating table," Abutorabi-Fard said in a speech Saturday.

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